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Home / Bay of Plenty Times

Body found in bush is missing 19-year old

By NEWSTALK ZB, NZPA
Bay of Plenty Times·
5 Jan, 2011 12:31 AM3 mins to read

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The body found near Matarangi on the Coromandel Peninsula on Monday has been identified as that of missing teenager Cem Erbay.
The 19-year-old Auckland student was last seen at around 4am on Saturday.
His body was found on Monday in thick bush at an area locals call the duck pond, which is
within walking distance of the Matarangi Shopping Centre.
Police spokesman Andrew McAlley said the Erbay family had asked for privacy.
A post mortem examination will be carried out today and could shed some light on how he died.
The death is being treated as suspicious.
Police are asking for anyone who may have seen Cem before he died to come forward.
Police are still appealing for information, especially from residents of Matarangi Rd or anyone who may have picked up a hitchhiker in the Coromandel over New Year. Mr McAlley said Cem may have caught a ride with a stranger due to hilly and difficult terrain in the area.
Yesterday, forensic experts and detectives returned to the area where the body was found and lay under guard overnight. It has since been removed.
Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Greene of the Waikato CIB said a preliminary scene examination had been carried out. He hoped the post-mortem examination would provide more information.
"Until those examinations have been done we are unable to complete the formal identity process however we are working along the lines that the man found in an area of scrub and bush off Matarangi Rd is Cem Erbay."
He said investigators were conscious there was a grieving family needing to see their loved one but said police had to balance that with maintaining the integrity of the scene and ensuring a thorough examination.
"Over the period Cem was missing we received a number of sighting reports from the public that we're very grateful for. However we're still seeking information from the public who may have seen him, particularly early New Year's Day as we piece together his movements.
"We'd particularly like to hear from anyone who saw him, wearing jeans and a long sleeved white T-shirt, between Simpson's Beach and Matarangi."
He said the first likely sighting of Cem at Matarangi was about 7am and the last confirmed sightings were at the Matarangi store between 9-10am and a short time after this at an area known to locals as the Duck Pond.
Mr Erbay's heart condition made it dangerous for him to over-exert himself and he could become disoriented and confused. Police said foul play was unlikely.

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